Injured Isner out of Australian Open

John Isner has withdrawn from the Australian Open because of a knee injury, leaving No. 22 Sam Querrey as the highest-ranked U.S. man at the season's first Grand Slam tournament.

Isner, who spent 18 weeks in the top 10 before finishing last year at No. 14, injured his right knee at the Hopman Cup last week and had to withdraw from the international mixed team competition. He lost to fellow American Ryan Harrison in straight sets at the Sydney International on Wednesday.

Australian wild card and former champion Jarmila Gajdosova beat Olga Govortsova of Belarus, 6-3, 6-1, to advance to the Hobart International (Australia) quarterfinals.

D.C. United signed Brazilian striker Rafael as a designated player on loan for one year.

Rafael, 20, joins United from Bahia of the Brazilian league.

Diana Taurasi was chosen USA Basketball's female athlete of the year for 2012 after leading the Americans to a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.

Basketball Australia said Seattle Storm forward Lauren Jackson is expected to make a full recovery from a persistent right hamstring injury after undergoing surgery in Melbourne this week. Jackson was advised to undergo surgery after a series of tests to ascertain the full extent of the injury.

Anders Bardal of Norway won a ski jump World Cup event in Wisla, Poland.

Bardal had jumps of 130 and 128 meters for a total of 264.4 points. Richard Freitag of Germany was second with 252.2 points.

Stephane Peterhansel boosted his lead in the Dakar Rally to 10 minutes after teammate Nani Roma won the fifth stage that finished in Santiago, Chile.

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.